To Achieve Happiness
by Mistress Ayako
Summary: With the right amount of love, the right amount of endearment, anyone's destiny can be re-written, so that they may obtain what everyone wants: happiness. Itachi's goal was to achieve that happiness. And he lets nothing stop him.
1. Foundation

**Okay, so let's get it straight. As much as I adore Sakura and Itachi, I don't own them, or anyone from Naruto.**

* * *

"Itachi-nii! Itachi-nii!" A little pink haired girl called into the edge of the forest, as she had been told by her nii-san. After a few moments of waiting, she plopped down on the surrounding grass and sighed. For the fortieth time since she picked it that morning, she smelled the flower in her hand. It smelled just like the cherry pie her mother would bake, and the peppermint candies her father would give her. Although the scent didn't match her Itachi-nii, the flower itself did. The scarlet red petals and the night-black center of the rare flora had instantly brought to mind her nii-san's beautiful doujutsu. The flower mimicked the determined, protective, burdened, hopeful eyes of her Itachi-nii. While everyone else fell for the stoic Itachi, she could tell what was truly hiding underneath his mask. The pinkette didn't notice a raven from the treetops vanish into nothingness, but as she twirled the grass between her fingers, she did notice the change in the wind. She looked up expectantly.

"Hi Itachi-nii!" The little girl greeted, unaware that she had already known where Itachi was going to be before he had arrived at said spot. But he noticed. He always did. He allowed a small smirk to grace his face for a moment before poking her nose, not unlike the way he poked his otouto's forehead.

"Itachi-nii! I have a present for you!" As she said this, she put the flower right up under his nose. The scent instantly slacked his muscles and the mixture of peppermint and cherries held so many precious memories that he was quickly tempted to sink into them. Then he remembered where he was.

"Where did you find this flower, Sakura-chan?" He asked her. Sakura smiled, grabbed his hand, and started running. As she pulled him along, he quickly noted that she was faster than his little brother. Swiftly, he pulled and secured Sakura onto his back, and kept running in the direction she had been pulling him in. She accepted the piggy back ride with a giggle. Now, as the unofficial navigator, she kept a sharp eye out for her forest markers. She saw the first willow tree, and tugged at Itachi's collar.

"Go North." She instructed, and Itachi obeyed. They passed a very round bolder. "West." She said, and again Itachi complied.

"Itachi-nii, do you think we can go up – " Sakura cut herself off with her own gasp as Itachi propelled both of them up into the treetops, graciously avoiding any twigs that could hurt either him or his companion. The foliage broke through, and he stopped. The pinkette grinned maniacally as Itachi gave his first sign of weakness in front of someone else besides his mother. The lake sparkled magnificently in the midday sun, and on its banks there were hundreds of the flora that Sakura had so graciously given to him. The array of red flowers, outlined by other flowers of the field, stood out with their bright color and scent. The peppermint and cherry smell carried to their noses as a gentle breeze reached out to the pair in the treetops.

"Do you like it, Itachi-nii?" She whispered in his ear. He jumped down, kneeling as he came in contact with solid ground and let his pink-haired companion slide off his back. She settled for sitting down on the outskirts of the red flowers, and he sat beside her. Instead of poking her nose, he ruffled her hair. Once again, she beamed with brightness, and they sat in a comfortable silence, both enjoying the sea of red in front of them. A few hours were spent lazily in the bright meadow, inhaling the scent of cherries and peppermint. Itachi found himself succumbing to a drowsy, content state, until he heard a growling coming from right next to him. He looked to his left to see Sakura putting her hands on her tummy, with a disgruntled expression. Itachi stood up, and she automatically put her arms up towards him, with no move to get up. He gathered her up into his arms, and with her secure in his grasp, he sped off towards a familiar house. Sakura made a point to point out all the flora of the forest on their way, what their uses were, if they were edible and such. He smirked.

_Only a child with pink hair would find the fun in knowing plant life of forests._ Yet Itachi 'hn'-ed when appropriate, letting her know he was listening. The forest thinned out again, into two winding paths towards a large, beige villa. Cutting through the tailored lawn, he could see in the distance, a woman with strikingly white hair, sitting on the porch of the villa, engrossed in a book. Hearing her daughter's voice, the woman looked up, and smiled. Itachi was there in a moment, and put Sakura down in order to allow the older woman to hug him.

"Itachi-chan, how nice of you to find Sakura-chan for me." She complimented. The two just smiled behind her back.

"She would get lost in that wilderness if it weren't for you. Come Itachi-chan, Sakura-chan. I'm sure you both are hungry. Sakura ran up to catch her mother and Itachi took two long strides so that he could match each female's pace. As they gathered in the kitchen, the servants bowed to the passing party, and Emi Haruno playfully shooed her servants out the kitchen. They complained about needing to fulfill their duties, but Emi just laughed them off. The two children sat at the main preparation counter, and were content to try her dishes as she cooked them. She laughed as Sakura tasted the spicy wasabi. Her face scrunched up so much, and Emi laughed so hard, that Itachi couldn't help to break into a smile. This was the one place where he could afford to be himself. Suddenly the kitchen doors bust open, only to reveal a brightly red-haired and violet eyed man. Ken'ichi Haruno came in and hugged his wife around the waist, and kissed her softly on her cheek. Then he grabbed Sakura, spun her around, and kissed her forehead. He proceeded to give Itachi a nuggie, which Itachi endured with great patience. But he did poke the man back in his stomach. Well, it was more of his abdomen muscles. He knew that the Harunos were retired ninja, deflected from minor villages, and he knew they kept in good shape. Mrs. Haruno, otherwise known as obasan to Itachi, was a former medic-nin, very skilled in her old village. And Mr. Haruno, ossan, was the top in his ranks in his old village. They still kept in shape, it was obvious. Now being profitable merchants, and with Mrs. Haruno acting as a traveling doctor, they had enough money to last them, and Sakura, a few lifetimes. They were the merchants that were rich, but worked hard to keep it unknown to who they were. Itachi was sure that the merchant world would be very surprised to find that their top competitors were simply two retired shinobi. Young and retired, but former shinobi nonetheless. Together, they sat down for the impromptu meal Mrs. Haruno had prepared, but scrumptious. No one spoke until their plates were clean. Mr. Haruno smiled at the children.

"You know, they say that silence during a meal means that the food is excellent." He winked, and Itachi nodded his head in acknowledgment while Sakura giggled. Mr. Haruno looked down at his watch.

"Time to go back, isn't it? We don't want Fugaku to know you've been fraternizing with 'commoners', now do we?" He laughed softly and shook his head. Itachi bowed to both Mr. and Mrs. Haruno.

"Thank you obasan and ossan for preparing me the delicious meal." And deep down, he really meant it, all formalities aside. Mrs. Haruno ran to hug him again.

"Itachi-chan, it was nothing. You know you are welcome here anytime, at any hour of any day." He nodded in acknowledgment. As she let him go, a pink haired blur crashed into Itachi's lower abdomen.

"Come back soon Itachi-nii, okay?" He softly patted her back as he usually did when he left her house.

"Alright Sakura-chan." With a silent wave, he transported himself away from the Haruno household. Ken'ichi shook his head.

"That boy is such a mystery." His wife and daughter just smiled.

Later that night, after he excused himself from the less-than-pleasant dinner that one of the servants prepared, Itachi began to settle into a random thought pattern. He shifted through memories, and his mind replayed a particular one.

_ "Itachi, you are being assigned to a B-ranked, month long mission." Sarutobi instructed him. "You are going to guard a wealthy merchant, Ken'ichi Haruno, his wife, Emi Haruno, his daughter, Sakura Haruno, and all their cargo as they travel to Rock to participate in the trade this year. This is your last mission before you qualify for the jonin, Itachi." The eleven year old Itachi bowed._

_ "Hai, Sarutobi-sama."_

_Itachi walked to the gates the next morning, and not five minutes later, was greeted by a red-haired man. He bowed deeply, and his wife and daughter, with white and pink her respectively, bowed as well._

_ "Thank you for accompanying us on this boring mission, Itachi-san." Itachi bowed back._

_ "All missions are necessary. I am ready to leave at your word, Haruno-san." The elder man smiled at him._

_ "Alright, everyone let's go!" Itachi couldn't help but to notice the pink haired girl's laugh, who he had identified as Sakura. The merchant family was an unusually happy one._

_The group would travel for one week to Stone, trade for two, and make their way back in another week, hopefully with less things bought then they had sold. On the first night, Itachi helped to set up camp, surprisingly with his employers as well. Their six year old daughter was extremely adamant that everyone help out with putting up tents, getting food, and starting the fire. After Itachi was done, he set up patrol, and returned to camp. There he saw Mrs. Haruno, making dinner with her daughter, Mr. Haruno looking around for fruits for desert. Itachi hadn't known there was an apple flying his way until he caught it, along with a few blackberries._

_ "Every growing Chunin needs nourishment. The bags under your eyes aren't only from a lack of sleep, they're from a deficiency of fiber, vitamin A, and potassium." A soft light twinkled in Mr. Haruno's eyes. Mrs. Haruno cut into the conversation._

_ "I can also see that you're lacking in Vitamin D. It's a good thing this fish has a lot of that. Itachi-san, come join us." He was about to respectfully decline until Sakura came up to him with a handful of cherries._

_ "And these have Vitamin C!" she exclaimed happily. Before he could respond, she had pulled him in between herself and Mrs. Haruno at the fire, and he actually found himself enraptured with the adult's conversation, just as much as their daughter had. That night, as Mrs. Haruno had put their daughter to sleep, and readied herself for bed, Mr. Haruno had pulled him aside._

_ "Itachi-san, I apologize for putting you in this mission. We have a few missing nin after us, is all. I don't doubt your abilities, I fear for your safety. Most of these nin are A-ranked but a few are S-ranked." Itachi nodded to his employer._

_ "I accepted the mission. I did not know of this information but it will be very handy. Thank you for your concern, Haruno-san." The next night, he had to kill a band of A-ranked missing nin. Mrs. Haruno healed his wounds as the sounds of fighting had awakened her, but not Sakura. Itachi stood obediently as the woman used her yellow chakra to heal him. _

_ "There, are you all better, Itachi-san?" She asked him, smiling._

_ "Hai, thank you, Haruno-san." He said as he pulled his shirt sleeve down. She gave a soft chuckle. _

_ "I suppose Sarutobi-sama did not mention that you would be traveling with retired nin. I believe it is something to prepare you for ANBU. You will not know everything about your opponents or your teammates." He stored this information in for later use._

_ "Thank you for your advice, Haruno-san." She nodded and went back to sleep._

_The next five days had gone easily, but every day had become livelier and happier, with his increased interaction with the Haruno family. They grew on him faster than mold grew on old cheese. Their passing knowledge, their advice, was more valuable to him then relentless training that the clan had imposed on him. And Sakura was always the light of their traveling group. They had gone and come back with favorable profit and no more attacks. Itachi's reputation had preceded him. He had led the Haruno family back to their home, and before he could leave, all three of them had embraced him in a tight family hug._

"_Thank you Itachi-chan." Ken'ichi said._

"_Yes, many thanks Itachi-chan." His wife agreed. But Itachi could not help but smirk at the six year old's voice._

"_You were awesome Itachi-nii! Come visit me, Kaasan and Otousan a lot, 'kay?" She exclaimed as she hugged him. "I had a bunch of fun." He accepted their family hug._

"_I will be sure to visit you, obasan and ossan as much as possible, Sakura-chan. That is my promise." She beamed, and he took his leave._

**And to think if I had never accepted that mission, how inwardly miserable I might've become.** He thought as he drifted to sleep.

* * *

While Itachi had been sifting through memories, a light had still been on at the Hokage tower.

"You know, Ken'ichi, I know of your origins." Ken'ichi Haruno bowed.

"Of course, Sarutobi-sama. Thank you for letting me stay here, once again." Sarutobi nodded.

"I fail I have neglected to entrust you with information that you may find crucial." Sarutobi said, and Ken'ichi allowed himself to be surprised.

"And what information is this, Sarutobi-sama?"

"We have a village orphan, and his name is Naruto Uzumaki." Sarutobi said, calculating the man's reaction.

"WHAT?" Ken'ichi screamed.

* * *

**(Beams) I'm so glad everyone liked the first chapter! I'm writing this down in a journal first, and then typing it up, so believe me when I say I'm working on this. Thank you everyone for reviewing and adding this story as your favorite! **


	2. Everyone's Connected

**I just wanted to thank all you lovely people once again for adding my story to story alerts and favorites, and I especially want to thank those that reviewed. Reviews make me update. :) I wrote this in my journal, and it turned out TOTALLY different when I started to type! So I hope you enjoy.**

**I own a Sakura tree, and I have a pet weasel, but I don't own Sakura or Itachi, or anyone from Kishimoto's work.**

* * *

The crickets had stopped chirping by the time Ken'ichi Haruno arrived home. The stars and full moon were the only things that helped to guide him home. The winding path seemed dull silver, but he cut across it, trampling a few flowers on his lawn. The first thing to assault his senses was the scent of chocolate. As he opened the door, a dim light caught his eyes – it was coming from the kitchen. The scent of chocolate got stronger, and then he couldn't help but to smile when he walked into the kitchen. Emi had stayed up, and was pouring two steaming cups of hot chocolate, marshmallows included. Her hair was swept all to one side, and her jade eyes that she had passed onto Sakura smiled sweetly up at him. Taking the invitation, he sat down, and slumped his head down onto the table. Emi pushed the porcelain white mug towards him, and he sat up and took a long gulp of the hot chocolate. She watched her husband carefully, and waited for him to speak. He took another long gulp, and then looked straight into her eyes.

"Kushina has a son." Emi dropped her cup, and it shattered onto the floor.

"WHAT?"

* * *

Sakura was awoken by her Kaasan an hour earlier than usual. She could hear the whacking of the wooden dummies in her backyard, obviously by her Otousan. She sat up expectantly, rubbing her eyes and smiling sleepily back up at her mother.

"What's the matter Kaasan?" Sakura asked, while hugging her bother as a good morning greeting.

"Let me go get your father, as you get ready, okay? We have a lot to do today." Emi said, gently pushing Sakura towards the bathroom. Sakura nodded her head as she got into the bathroom. When she had gotten dressed and arrived downstairs, she could see none of the servants in sight, cleaning or doing anything. She looked around with her eyebrow raised and a small frown, but shook it off as she heard her mother and father talking in the dining room. Sakura pushed back the door, and her parents stopped talking as she entered the room. They both smiled at her, but it was weaker smiles than what they usually gave her.

"Otousan, I don't understand what's wrong." Sakura said, looking at her parents, obviously puzzled.

"Sakura, have you ever wondered why, when we go into any village besides Konoha, we must dye our hair black, you must not associate with other children, and I must change my eye color to green?" Sakura looked up at her otousan.

"But… Kaasan said that it was because we had to protect ourselves, so no one could get mad and find us later." Ken'ichi nodded.

"Yes, that is true. But have you ever wondered why we needed to be protected? You've seen me fight Sakura. I can take on mere bandits. Did you ever wonder why we needed Itachi to accompany us on that trip to Rock?" Sakura shook her head.

"Otousan, I am confused. I don't know what you're trying to tell me." Sakura confessed, trying to look for the answers in her father's eyes. He looked at her and gave her a sad smile.

"I guess we'll just have to explain it all when we get to the Hokage Tower." Ken'ichi said. "We'll eat breakfast on the way there." Sakura could only come along as her parents locked the house and, for once, walked down the winding path towards the main part of Konoha.

* * *

Itachi was overly bored. He had twenty more mission requirements before he could apply to be ANBU. He wished the Hokage would hurry up and assign them to him. After his Kaasan had served him breakfast, he had left in a flash to report to the Hokage Tower for any available mission openings. Of course, there had been none. He had been walking out of the tower when Sarutobi had stopped him.

"Itachi-san, I need you in my office please." Itachi picked up his pace, which was the closest he'd come to running in excitement since he had been two. Itachi closed the door behind him, and Sarutobi motioned for him to sit.

"Itachi, I'm closing your mission objective to protect Naruto. You've been on it since you were ten, and after 2 years, this mission has come to a close." Itachi's eyes narrowed. Sarutobi sighed at the young boy's lack of verbal communication.

"He is going to be adopted by the Haruno family. In fact they are on their way now, about five buildings from here. Please get Naruto for me." Itachi bowed.

_The Harunos? Why would they want Naruto? They probably didn't even know of his existence until Sarutobi told them._

He ran quickly through the hidden corridors, only to find Naruto playing in his room.

"Itachi-senpai! Are you going to help me practice with kunais today?" Naruto asked him as Itachi kneeled down to poke his stomach. Naruto giggled.

"No Naruto-chan, I'm coming to take you to Sarutobi. He has people that he wants you to meet." Naruto obediently put down his kunai next to the bare dresser in his overall plain room. He nodded.

"Okay, take me to Oiji-sama." Itachi grabbed the younger boy's hand as he always did. He briefly wondered if Sasuke would be jealous.

* * *

Sakura didn't talk the whole way there, not through breakfast, nor when they arrived at the tower. Mechanically, she walked up the stairs, and she didn't look at her parent's faces. They were quickly into Sarutobi's office, and when they walked in, she finally looked up. The first person she saw was Sarutobi-sama, who she bowed to. He had been in their house a few times. Next, she saw her Itachi-nii, which made her happy instantly, but then she saw the yellow-haired blue eyed boy behind him, which looked so much like her father it struck her. If the boy just had her father's hair and eyes, it'd be a younger replica of him. Her puzzled face morphed into a stern frown.

"Otousan, I don't understand." She said, the worry leaking out in her voice. Ken'ichi saw Sarutobi signal for Itachi to leave, but he shook his head no.

"Itachi deserves to know. He is like a son to me." Itachi stood still, next to Naruto. Sarutobi made a few hand signs and slammed his palm against the wall next to him. Itachi automatically checked for its strength, and satisfied, he brought his attention back to Sarutobi.

"Naruto, this is Ken'ichi and Emi Haruno, and their daughter, Sakura." Sarutobi said. Naruto just shook his head.

"Oiji-sama, I don't understand. Aren't they supposed to hate me like the rest of the village does?" Naruto asked, looking back between both parties. Itachi silently leaned against the wall, steadily observing.

"Naruto, Sakura, Itachi, there are a few secrets that we've been keeping from you, and from the village. Everything you hear now is an S-class secret." Sarutobi said. Both Naruto and Sakura looked at Itachi for clarification.

"An S-class secret is something that you may not tell anyone else, punishable by death." Itachi explain, and they both nodded with acceptance.

"First, we can clear up how Itachi knows the both of you. Itachi has been on a mission for the past two years to guard Naruto, and they have developed a kohai-senpai friendship. But Itachi has also been on a month-long mission with the Harunos, and has developed a close bond with them also." Itachi nodded his head in agreement with Sarutobi's words, and Naruto smiled at Sakura and she smiled back.

_ If Itachi is okay with him, then so am I._ Sakura thought, her eyes shining at both of the boys. But her father's sudden movements interrupted her thoughts.

"Please, everyone sit down." Emi decided to stand up and put her hand on her husband's should, and he gave her a weak smile. Sakura and Naruto sat on either side of Itachi, who inwardly smirked to himself. _I was not expecting this when I left the Uchiha compound today._

Emi leisurely leaned against the wall, as Ken'ichi began to pace around the room. He took a deep breath, and then let it out.

"I once lived in a place called the Land of Whirlpool…" he began, his eyes not even in this room, but wrapped in a different time.

"There were trees, beautiful willow trees that surrounded us, and oaks and maples and birch trees and conifers of all sorts. We were a small land, but we made big off the abundance of squid, octopi, crabs, shrimp, and other creatures of the sea that sold for high prices in places like Sand, Leaf, or Rock. We were a prosperous little land, not even big enough to be recognized as a nation. But we did have ninjas. There were a few great clans in Whirlpool. There was the Takahashi clan, great with weapons. The Zihetsu clan had a bloodline limit of being able to repair all forms of cellular damage, making them forever youthful and formidable in battle. And then there was the Uzumaki clan. The Uzumaki were gifted with a strange chakra. They had chakra that would form in chains. Massive chakra reserves which made the chakra form in chains, and we had an affinity for metals. The Uzumaki clan was not a huge family, but a tight-knit one. There was just one Clan elder, granddaughter of the clan's founder, the clan Head, his two brothers, two sisters that had married into the other previously mentioned clans, and their children. The clan head had five children. The oldest one was named Ken'ichi Uzumaki. The youngest one was named Kushina Uzumaki. Kushina is the name of your mother, Naruto."

Sakura and Naruto gasped.

"Otousan, that means…" Sakura exclaimed, looking over Itachi to Naruto

"That means…" Naruto said, looking back at Sakura and then at her parents.

"We're related!" They said simultaneously. Ken'ichi grinned along with his wife, and then continued with his story.

"I met Emi when Kushina was only six years old. I was sixteen. Our father didn't approve. Emi was a rogue nin, deflected from Hidden Mist. Hunter nin were after her. My father didn't condone it, so we left. We left Kushina. Kushina was the only one that approved of Emi. She is the only Mist nin I have met that wasn't bloody, and Kushina could only see good in her. After we left, we had to always be on the run. I took on the Haruno name so that my family would believe I was dead. We had to take assignments where ever we decided to stay. Always bare escapes with Mist Hunter nin. Then, six years ago, Sarutobi offered us asylum here. My hair was dyed black then, and so was Emi's, and we manipulated my chakra to make my eyes appear green. There was no way I could've known about Kushina being here, just the year before. We didn't know she had a son." Ken'ichi sighed, the frown spreading to every feature of his usually cheerful face. Emi went over to him, and slowly began to massage his back.

"Itachi-chan, I don't know if you know this or not, but the Kyuubi was sealed into a baby. Do you know what baby it was sealed into?" She asked, looking straight into his eyes.

"Hai, I do." Itachi confirmed. Then Emi directed her gaze towards Naruto.

"Have you ever wondered why the villagers hate you so much?" She asked, staring into his eyes. He nodded at her.

"Biju can't be killed. They can only be sealed away. Kushina had been the previous container for the Kyuubi. No one knew of her secret, so she led a happy life. But as she was dying while carrying you, Naruto… her strength weakened. Kyuubi was unleashed right after you were born. It gained strength, and then it attack Konoha. We don't know why. And then Kyuubi was sealed into the Yondaime's son, with his own hands. Into you, Naruto." For once, the two talkative children were rendered speechless.

"That's why they hate you. They believe you ARE the Kyuubi, Your father wanted you to be seen as a hero. Your mother wanted you to be kept a secret, but, as Sarutobi-sama told us, someone discovered your identity, stealing your chances of a normal, happy life. We would've come for you Naruto, because our Nakama is our way. Our nakama is protected before everything else. But we didn't know. We didn't know the villagers were treating you like this, or else there would've been hell to pay. So forgive us, Naruto, please." Emi opened her arms out to him, and Naruto ran into them and cried. Ken'ichi composed himself.

"In memory of my sister, and since you are family, we would like to adopt you. We don't want the villagers to be mistreated by you anymore. Wouldn't you agree, Sakura?" Itachi turned his attention to the girl beside him, her jade eyes taking in her own kaasan hugging her newfound cousin, her eyes looking at her otousan, empathy locked into her look – one look that he would never forget. As Naruto settled down into a sniffle, Sakura got up and looked straight into his eyes.

"I've always wanted an otouto." She said, suddenly smiling. He tackled her to the ground with a massive hug.

"I've always wanted a family." Naruto replied, and then everyone started to laugh, and even Itachi gave a real, genuine full smile, which was caught by both Naruto and Sakura. In a rare, priceless display of affection, he pulled both Naruto and Sakura into a warm embrace. Then their parents joined in the hug, and Sarutobi suddenly summoned a camera to his hand a snapped a picture, grinning mischievously. Emi was the first to recover from the emotional state.

"This deserves a party, doesn't it?" She exclaimed, already thinking about the foods she would prepare. Sakura jumped up, grabbing both Naruto and Itachi's hands.

"Come on Itachi-nii, otouto! We're going to have a party!" She exclaimed. Itachi quickly put a concealing jutsu on himself and his two companions as Sakura pretty forcefully pulled them both out the door, for a seven year old. Ken'ichi and Emi turned around and bowed deeply toward Sarutobi.

"Thank you for giving us back our family, Sarutobi-sama." They said together, smiling.

"Think nothing of it. Now hurry up before those children get lost." He said back, shooing them off as if they were children. Hand in hand, the couple went out the office and de-activated the room seal on the way. Sarutobi pulled his orb to his palms to watch Itachi, Sakura, and Naruto walk down Konoha's streets with black hair and green eyes, Itachi suppressing all three of their chakras.

_They're going to become great one day._ He mused, as he watched the unlikely trio walk down the street. There was a sudden knock at his door. Sarutobi dispelled the jutsu.

"You may enter." Kakashi Hatake came in, with a report.

"I have bad news, Sarutobi-sama." The happy moment forgotten, Sarutobi's face appeared older, sharper.

"Damn the Uchiha clan." He said.

* * *

Itachi was silently listening to the stories about his adopted ossan's childhood days, with Naruto's mother, Kushina. About how the first time she tried to attack him in a spar, she had slipped on mud and fallen flat in it, or how she would always scream "DATTABANE!" when she was excited, identical to Naruto's "DATTEBAYO!" He silently observed how Sakura tried to make Naruto feel at home, when she held his hand and asked about things he liked.

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" She asked, as it was getting late and she was tired.

"I want to be Hokage! That way, everyone will see and recognize me! Dattebayo!" He grabbed the last piece of pocky and dango, splitting the dango in half and giving it to Itachi, then splitting the pocky in half and giving it to Sakura.

"What do you want to be, Sakura-nee-san?" He asked.

"Ah, I don't know." She looked over to their mother. "I want to help people; I guess I want to be a medic nin like my mom was. Naruto nodded, pleased with her answer. As Naruto finished his piece of pocky and dango, she turned towards Itachi.

"What do you want to be when you grow up, Itachi? Besides ANBU Captian." Itachi chewed his dango slowly, careful not to show any emotion in his eyes.

"I will lead the police corps." He said. But Sakura shook her head.

"I didn't say what are you GOING to be. I asked what do you WANT to be!" She said, a pout forming on her face. "Tell me Itachi-nii!" She demanded.

"I would like to be Konoha's ambassador." He said. Naruto automatically grinned.

"When I become Hokage, you will become my newest ambassador! Dattebayo!" He said, a glint of determination in his eye. "And Sakura-nee-san, you can be the top medic nin in Konoha's hospital! Then everything will work out!" He said, grinning. Sakura smiled, straight at Itachi.

"I would like that, wouldn't you, Itachi-nii?" she said, tilting her head.

"I would." Just then, Emi came into the kitchen.

"Itachi-chan, it's getting late. You know, your father may be searching for you." Itachi sighed in recognition, and got up. Naruto began to pout.

"So soon, Itachi-senpai?" He wailed. Itachi ruffled both Sakura and Naruto's hair, and Sakura got up and gave him a hug, as per usual.

"Hai. I shall be back tomorrow. You know how to reach me if you need me." He said, addressing both of them. They nodded in affirmation. Ken'ichi stood at the doorway behind his wife.

"Goodnight Itachi-chan." Itachi smirked and gave a small wave.

"Goodnight, ossan, obasan." Then he was gone, out through the window.

Sakura and Naruto suddenly became tired, and he was happy to figure out that he had his own furnished room, in orange, white, and blue. Ken'ichi and Emi tucked both their children into bed, and silently decided to help their children in whatever they could, especially when it came to achieving their dreams.

* * *

Itachi Uchiha arrived back to the Uchiha compound, and went straight to his room. He ignored his fuming father, who was worried about how a clan heir was supposed to be perceived, parading Konoha's streets at such an hour of the night. He promised his otouto that he would help him with his spar tactics in the morning. He bid his kaasan a silent goodnight, and stripped off his ninja gear, which he wore everywhere. Especially his jonin vest. The chunin vest was not something you could keep, it had to be recycled back into the village, but the jonin vest was his second item to keep as a ninja. Of course, there was his hitaiate, which he received when he first became genin, but the jonin vest had been his first real challenge. He laid on it as he was about to go to sleep. Plus, Sakura liked to wear it a lot, so it smelled like her. With these thoughts, Uchiha Itachi began to sleep.

* * *

**I hope everyone enjoyed! And I'll let you guess if it's non-massacre or not. ;). I believe things will be going pretty fast in the next five chapters, so hold on to your seatbelts! And please do not forget to review. Positive flames are welcome. **


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